Talk To Me
by MissyMo2005
Summary: Molly struggles to come to terms with some of the things she has seen an experienced after returning from another tour. Charles becomes increasingly worried about the woman he loves as she continues to bottle things up. Can he persuade her to open up and let him help her?
1. Chapter 1

_Hi Guys! Okay so first of all to my CPD readers- I'm so sorry! I will finish the stories I have in progress I promise, I just didn't have any motivation.. Then I watched this amazing show the other day and wow! I fell in love with it! If you haven't seen this amazing show I would totally recommend finding somewhere to watch it online!_

_This is just a little something I've had floating around in my head for a little while since I started to watch the show. I know this is short but I wanted to post it and see what kind of response I got, so let me know what you think and if you think I should continue! Thanks for reading!_

Charles rolled over, blinking sleepily as his arms stretched out in to the empty space beside him where Molly Dawes should've been. His fingers tightened around the cold and empty bed sheets as he forced his eyes to focus on the red flashing numbers of the alarm clock that stood beside his bed. 3.21am. Sighing quietly, he ran his hands though his hair as he climbed out of bed, the cold air making him shiver slightly.

He knew exactly where she was. It had almost become a part of their routine in the two weeks Molly had been back from her latest tour. They'd go to bed together and he'd fall asleep with her in his arms- then he'd wake a few hours later to find the bed beside him empty. He quietly made his way down the stairs, towards the slither of light he could see coming from the kitchen door.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs he silently pushed the kitchen door open a fraction, peering around. She was there, just as he thought she would be- sat at the kitchen table wearing one of his old jumpers which practically drowned her, that dark hair that he loved so much scraped back away from her face as she leant over the table, head in her hands and stared down in to a glass of water as though it was going to give her all the answers she could ever need from life.

"Molly?" He whispered, pushing the door the rest of the way open.

She snapped around to face him, her eyes wide with fear. "Shit Charles." She muttered, shoving her hands in to her lap so he wouldn't see the way they were shaking.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He apologised, quickly stepping in to the kitchen and taking a seat next to her. "What are you doing down here at this time anyway Dawes?" He asked, putting an arm around her and pulling her towards him.

Molly sighed, resting her head against his chest and breathing in his scent that she'd missed so much during the six long months she'd been gone.

Charles sat quietly, his fingers gently rubbing against her lower back as he waited for her to confirm what he already knew.

There was a few long moments of silence before Molly spoke. "Just needed a glass of water." She muttered, stifling a yawn.

"Molly-" Charles started, knowing there was much more going on in her head than she was ever going to admit, but she cut up.

"Shut up Charles- I'm tired and I'm going to bed." She laughed, although it sounded forced to her own ears, something which didn't go unnoticed by her former captain.

He hesitated, opening his mouth to argue with her but then thought better of it. No one would ever win an argument with Molly Dawes, especially not while she was being so defensive- she'd talk when she was ready and not a moment before.

They made their way back up the stairs in silence, Molly avoiding making eye contact with him as they climbed back in to bed, Charles' arms winding around her waist and holding her close. Molly closed her eyes, pretending to sleep in an effort to stop him worrying about her. She smiled slightly, feeling him place a feather light kiss on her forehead, and relaxed slightly in his arms. She was exhausted, she wouldn't deny that, but every time she closed her eyes she was haunted by the images of what she'd seen during her tours- the images burned in to her brain for eternity. Everywhere she looked during the door she saw them, lying there on the floor reliant on her to save their lives, she saw Smurf fall down on the football pitch at West Ham and at night it was ten times worse, there was nothing she could do to stop the dreams. So instead, she'd lay there until she was convinced Charles was asleep, then she'd creep out of the bedroom and down the stairs, spending most of the night sat in the kitchen staring at the walls before creeping back up the stairs and in to his arms before he woke.

"Molly?" Charles hissed in to the darkness. Her eyes were closed but he was almost certain she was just pretending to sleep in an effort to avoid having to have a conversation with him. He waited for a few seconds but got no response, deciding not to push it in case she was actually asleep. She was exhausted, he could see it in her face. The dark circles that had been under her eyes when he'd picked her up from Brize Norton hadn't faded, if anything they'd gotten bigger, she crease in between her eyebrows seemed permanent now from the frown she'd worn almost constantly since she'd stepped off that plane. It wasn't unusual for soldiers to struggle to deal with some of the things they'd seen on the front line, hell he knew that from personal experience. He just didn't want Molly to try and bottle it up, he didn't want to watch it eat away at her. Every time he'd tried to broach the subject with her she'd shut down instantly, either changing the subject or ignoring him entirely. He needed to be patient, if she trusted him enough eventually she'd tell him. He just wasn't sure how long he could be patient for.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey guys! I'd just like to say thank you so much for the fantastic response that I've had to this story! I was absolutely blown away reading all your reviews and it's really motivated me to crack on and get this next part written for you all. I hope you enjoy it!_

Charles woke up again exactly two hours and 47 minutes later to find Molly thrashing around in the bed beside him. It took him a few moments to wake up enough to process what was going on, then he quickly turned on the lights and shook her gently. "Molly! Wake up!" He called, shaking her gently again. Her eyes flew open, wide and full of fear. "It's okay, it was just a dream." Charles whispered as soothingly as he could, pulling her closer and holding her tightly. "It was just a dream Molly."

Molly laid there in his arms, breathing heavily as her heart pounded in her chest. It was such a vivid dream she could've sworn it was reality. He'd been lying there on the floor in front of her and she could've sworn she could feel the pulse in his neck, feel his blood on her fingers. She looked down at her hands which were trembling slightly. It was just a dream, that was proved by the fact she was laying there in Charles' arms and not stranded in the middle of the Afghan desert. She just couldn't believe how real it had felt.

She blinked several times, trying to hold at bay the tears that were threatening to flood down her face at the same time as making a conscious effort to slow down her breathing. "Molly?" Charles said, sitting up to look at her and pulling her with him.

She looked up at him, her eyes filled with tears and he could've sworn he felt his heart break there and then. She looked so broken and defeated it scared him, it was so unlike Molly Dawes. "I'm sorry Charles." She whispered, resting her head against his shoulder to hide the tears that spilled down her cheek.

"Why are you apologising?" He asked, surprised. "You don't have to apologise for any of it Molly, it's normal- We've all been there." He paused for a moment. "I've been there Molly." He shuddered a little, thinking back to those first few weeks after Smurf's brother had been killed. He'd been a mess, but his friends and family had helped him through it. "You can't keep it all bottled up inside."

Molly sniffed slightly, holding back a quiet sob as she fought to get her emotions in check. She didn't do emotions- it was probably as a result of the family she'd grown up with. She didn't know how to tell him what she was feeling, how could she tell him she'd barely slept for more than an hour or two since she'd been back. She was fairly sure he was aware of the second part, despite her attempts to try and hide it. "I'm fine Charles." The words slipped out of her mouth automatically, her reflex response to someone asking her about her emotions. "I'm going to take a shower." She muttered, pulling herself free from his arms and rushing out of the bedroom.

As soon as she reached the bathroom Molly slammed the door shut, locking it behind herself to stop Charles trying to follow her. She quickly turned on the shower, before sinking down to the floor, her knees drawn up to her chin as she let out the tears that she'd been trying to hold in. As she'd predicted, only a few seconds later the handle on the bathroom door turned as Charles tried to follow after her. "Molly?" He called quietly through the door. "Can you let me in?" He knew she wasn't actually in the shower, despite the fact he could hear the water running. She was just hiding from him.

"Piss of and let me take a shower Charles!" Molly called back. She'd meant it to sound joking, like the banter that used to flow between them constantly, but her words had come out flat and empty.

Charles leant his head back against the bathroom door, not responding to her. He wanted nothing more than to be able to comfort her in some way, for her to let him in to help her. Instead he was stuck on the other side of the door, listening to the sound of her crying quietly while she pretended to be in the shower and it was killing him.

After sitting on the bathroom floor for at least ten minutes Molly finally managed to pull herself together and get up off the floor to get in the shower. As she stripped out of her pyjamas she caught sight of her reflection in the mirror. She looked pale and tired, nothing like the girl in the photo that had been taken before she'd left for her first tour. The dark circles under her now puffy and red eyes gave away exactly how little sleep she'd been getting, no matter how much she wanted to hide it from Charles.

Climbing in to the shower she let the lukewarm water run down her body, as if it would some how wash away everything that she'd seen. In reality she could wash the grime of the Afghan desert off her skin but it would take a hell of a lot more than a hot shower to fix her screwed up head. She sighed, leaning her head against the freezing cold tiles on the wall of the shower. She hadn't felt like this after returning home before. Last time she'd struggled with being home because she felt as though she had more to do, as though she should still be there. That was easily dealt with, she'd signed up for another tour. The feelings she was currently experiencing were so much harder to comprehend.

Getting out of the shower and wrapping her towel tightly around her she opened the bathroom door, hesitating slightly as though to check the coast was clear. Slightly relieved to see Charles wasn't still lurking outside the bathroom waiting for her she made her way in to the bedroom, pulling out her trainers and running gear. It was a long shot but maybe running could help her clear her head.

She bounced down the stairs, plugging her headphones in as she walked towards the kitchen. "I've made breakfast." Charles smiled, turning around to face her as she stepped in to the kitchen.

"I was just going to head out for a run." Molly said quietly, her eyes resting on the mess in the kitchen. She felt bad, he'd gone to so much effort, but the thought of food was making her feel slightly nauseous.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Charles offered, setting the frying pan down in the sink as he tried to hide the disappointment on his face.

"No, it's okay." Molly said, walking towards him. "I won't be long, then I'll sit and have some breakfast with you." She said, trying to rearrange her face in to something that resembled a smile. She stretched up and kissed him gently before pulling back and heading for the door.

"I love you Dawes." Charles called after her as she reached the door.

He watched as she hesitated, turning around to face her. "Ditto." She called back to him before plugging in her headphones and heading out of the door with a genuine smile on her face, leaving Charles stood in the kitchen smiling to himself.


End file.
